DMV

TWO BOOKS REVIEWED:

 Witness to the Truth: My Struggle for Human Rights in Louisiana JOHN H. SCOTT with CLEO SCOTT BROWN

 &

 An Unlikely Warrior: Herman Ferguson Evolution of a

Black Nationalist Revolutionary

 BY IYALUUA FERGUSON With HERMAN FERGUSON Part 1 Book

Reviews by Elder/Publisher H. Khalif Khalifah

 SEPTEMBER 5, 2011
NAT TURNER LIBRARY, VIRGINIA – His name was Rev. John H. Scott. He was materially poor, slight in stature; a man of mighty Will, courage, Spiritual wealth and determination elevated his stature, slightness and poverty to that of a magnificent, beneficent giant Black Man.
     He was a Disciple/colleague of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; a “charge” of Atty. Thurgood Marshall and NAACP. Rev. John H. Scott was not unlike literally thousands of young men and women in the deepest depth of Slavery, Second-Class citizenship and other forms of Oppression in the United States of America. Many feel that their/our struggle for Freedom, justice and Equality are what shaped the ‘good parts of America.’
     The nature of Rev. John Scotts work was amid the total capitalistic, greedy, barbaric, criminal, brutal, demonic nature of white people in and around Lake Providence, Louisiana. As white people did throughout America, they stopped at no limit to deny Black people simple justice during his time: Circa 1900 to 1980.
      Under the burden of so called law enforcement, Rev. John H. Scott survived the wholesale murder, brutalization and intimidation of so-called white “kind-of-men” and women in Northeast Louisiana. He was born there and refused to leave, though he had many opportunities. He stayed and broke the back of segregation/denial of voting rights.

     John H. Scott helped to advance the Black Liberation struggle to its most recent, significant place on our progression to Complete Freedom: all activities, movements, programs since have been attempts to make the next great advance for the Race.

      REPARATIONS WILL GET US THERE!

       Many Black men and women feel that the successful “Educating of the Black masses about our right to Reparations” will be that next significant advance.

     However, the Reparations movement is stagnated for lack of the thrust that would get our overdue Reparations. It is no secret that the payment of Reparations is stalled for lack of an application to Back Up the Demand.      To my knowledge we have lost no lives in the struggle for Reparations: not so in the successful struggle to knock down the wall of segregation/denial of voting rights.

NOT WITHOUT BLOOD AND TREASURE

Not only did John H. Scott survive the many attempts to kill him – he was shot gunned in a car filled with his wife, Alease, and several of his children; The place he called home burned to the ground while his entire family barely escaped in the very dark of the night; and just one more example of several other attempts to kill him: he confronted and faced down a white coward gunman perched in a tree in his front yard. The white coward was there to kill him for the reward that was on the head of Rev. Scott.

     Yet, Rev. John H. Scott not only lived long enough to tell the story about his victory over one particular obnoxious element of oppression in the United States of America: this is the right to vote! He also lived long enough to see all of his children graduate college, some with doctorate degrees, Law Degrees, succeed in the business of educating Black babies where it counts the most: from age 2 to 6, while raising good of character, productive children.

ADVANCE FOR STRUGGLE INTEGRATION/VOTING RIGHTS - NOT SECURED; NOR TOTALLY UNDERSTOOD

Rev. Scott was a Black hero for any generation and for all seasons. But misunderstood, as were most segregation/voter rights Advocates. In subsequent generations ignorant men and some women, whose lives are accomplished because of their victory over vile institutions still call them misguided. Or fools who faced all the venom without winning any advance for Black people.

     But Rev. John Scott lived long enough to tell the story and correct the historical record: Breaking down segregation and denial of the right to vote was NOT the end in itself: NO! Theirs was a struggle for simple justice, dignity and respect.  The struggle happened during what may be the most helpless period of time in the history of Black people, ever! This in the aftermath of chattel slavery in the United States of America: 1863 to 2011.

      Dignity and respect are the first requisites to engage in the protracted fight to win Complete Freedom in a Liberation Struggle. That the likes of Rev. John H. Scott won this battle is without a doubt. The win effectively puts the Black Race in a position to go forward to win the next battle in the long war. GRANTED! They did not secure the position they gave blood and treasure to attain: nor was a blueprint and energy left to fuel and motivate the next generation to organize the necessary Movement for Complete Freedom.

     Indeed, the position has eroded to the point where the presidency of the United States was stolen BECAUSE Black votes were NOT counted in the year 2000. On the other hand, perhaps, it was not their mission to secure the voting/segregation positions: perhaps that mission was a must requirement for the men and women who inherited the positions they fought so hard to win.

     Without a doubt, because of Rev. John H. Scott and his generation, the place where the next generation, the ones charged with finding a way to overcome challenges to attain the next position in the Liberation struggle started from that station: may win the whole thing. After all, Reparations is paid by a defeated criminal/enemy…

     Spiritually speaking, the fact that the of power voting rights and desegregation were eroded so badly, so heartless and ruthlessly, the lesson/way to move forward is hard to ignore: Black people must not only learn this lesson in our Divine Destiny (Sekher), we must learn the lesson applying the Divine Law (MAAT).

     There have been a multitude of organized formations formed, in part to get the job done, but if the Reality be expressed candidly, none have had the sheer impact to where victory over segregation and denial of voting advanced the race.

 A CLOSER LOOK AT ONE DYNAMIC ATTEMPT IN THE 1960’S TO PHYSICALLY WIN COMPLETELY OVER OPPRESSION: R.A.M.

      The next of the Two Book Reviews, is a look at the work of one Black warrior, the people and organized formations that tried to move the struggle to the next significant level – Reparations and all!

     Herman Ferguson was a leader of an organization called R.AM., Revolutionary Action Movement.

 [end of Part 1]

The family of Rev. John Scott was raised, with an equally intelligent, gorgeous, elegant, and heroic wife, Alease. The family is still intact; the children and Grand Children give out scholarships in his name annually. A contribution to this memorializing of his name and work can be made by purchasing a copy of this great book: Witness To The Truth, it was written by one of his five daughters, Cleo.

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FOR MORE ABOUT H. KHALIF KHALIFAH, GO TO www.natturnertrail.com or www.livinginblack.com – or read his latest of 15 books: “The Acquisition and Proper Use of Power.” @ PayPal: khalifah@khabooks.com

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